Shaw Mountain Natural Area

Autumn bursts with color just as spring provides a glorious show of wildflowers.

The limestone uplift of Shaw Mountain rises over 500 feet from the surrounding land, and is a dominant landscape feature in Benson and adjacent West Haven, Vermont. Shaw Mountain Natural Area supports 11 distinct plant communities, including a shrub swamp, vernal pools, an oak-hickory forest, and a calcareous outcrop community, in addition to 15 rare plant species.

Why the Conservancy Selected this Site

The Conservancy targeted the Shaw Mountain area for conservation due to its high biodiversity value, excellent condition, and large size.

OPEN TO THE PUBLIC

LOCATION

EXPLORE

HIGHLIGHTS

Come see the spectacular plants and animals located at Shaw Mounting Natural Area.

Size

600 acres

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From Route 22A in Fair Haven, follow signs to Benson. (They will take you on an unmarked road going west, known locally as Lake Road and identified by the Vermont Gazetteer as Mill Pond Road). At the stop sign (0.8 mile), go straight. Turn left onto Parkhill Road (1.1 miles) and drive for 0.5 mile. Go right on Money Hole Road and proceed until you see the Conservancy sign at a pullout on the left (1.7 miles). Park here—the trail enters the woods from this point.

Resources

What to See: Plants

Several of the natural communities found at Shaw Mountain are considered outstanding examples of their type. These include a shrub swamp, vernal pools, a mesic maple-ash-hickory-oak forest, and a calcareous outcrop community. Notable plants include handsome sedge, large-bracted tick-trefoil, yellow oak, snowy aster, squaw root, sessile-leaved boneset, three-lobed violet, and four-leaved milkweed.

What to See: Animals

Spotted salamanders breed in the vernal pools on Shaw Mountain’s limy saddles. Wild turkeys nest and feed throughout the oak-hickory forests and bobcats den among the rocky slopes and ledges.

The Nature Conservancy is a nonprofit, tax-exempt charitable organization (tax identification number 53-0242652) under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Donations are tax-deductible as allowed by law.